Lawyers, politicians and victims’ groups gathered outside Parliament on Tuesday to protest against government plans to remove jury trials from a wide range of criminal cases in England and Wales, warning the move would weaken a long-standing safeguard in the justice system.
The demonstration came as ministers press ahead with the Courts and Tribunals Bill, which would allow cases expected to attract sentences of three years or less to be heard by a judge sitting alone rather than before a jury. The legislation would also reduce the ability of defendants charged with many either-way offences to opt for trial by jury, with courts instead deciding where those cases should be heard.
The government says the change is needed to tackle the growing backlog in the Crown Court, which has risen above 80,000 cases. Justice Secretary David Lammy has described the position as an “emergency in our courts” and said reform is necessary to cut the “agonising delays” faced by victims and defendants.
Under the proposals, jury trials would be reserved for the most serious offences, including indictable-only crimes such as murder and rape, and for either-way cases where the likely sentence is more than three years. Ministers have argued that juries are not being abolished, but preserved for the most serious trials.
Opponents say the bill would amount to one of the most significant curbs on jury trial in modern times. The Law Society of England and Wales has said the proposals “go too far in eroding our fundamental right to be judged by a jury of our own peers”.
Critics in the legal profession say the plans focus on changing the trial process rather than addressing the causes of the backlog. Richard Atkinson, a former president of the Law Society, has argued that the government should instead reopen unused courts, invest further in legal aid and recruit more judges. The Bar Council has also pointed to wider pressures on the criminal justice system, including shortages of barristers and a high number of ineffective trials.
The proposals go beyond recommendations made by Sir Brian Leveson in his 2025 review of the Crown Court. His review suggested some lower-level cases could be heard by a judge sitting with magistrates, rather than by a judge alone. The Institute for Government has warned that the government’s approach could make England and Wales an international outlier and sharply narrow the circumstances in which defendants can still have their case decided by a jury.
Most criminal cases are already dealt with in magistrates’ courts, and jury trials account for only a small proportion of the total caseload. However, defendants charged with either-way offences currently have a long-standing right to elect trial by jury in the Crown Court. Judge-only trials already exist in limited circumstances, such as where there is a serious risk of jury tampering, but the new bill would extend that principle much more widely.
Ministers say the scale of the backlog leaves little room for delay. Official figures showed 76,597 open Crown Court cases in March 2025, rising to 79,619 by September. A report by the Public Accounts Committee said the outstanding caseload had climbed from around 60,000 in 2021 to 73,105 by September 2024, before rising further last year. Government projections suggest the total could reach 100,000 by 2028.
The backlog increased sharply after pandemic court closures and has since been compounded by staffing shortages, pressure on legal aid, limited court capacity and increasingly complex cases. The Ministry of Justice says it funded a record 110,000 Crown Court sitting days in 2025, but critics argue that the system remains under strain.
A memorandum published alongside the bill says the right to a fair trial under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights does not require a jury trial, and ministers say judge-only hearings would remain lawful and fair. But some barristers and campaign groups have warned the reforms could face legal challenge and raise further questions about public confidence in the justice system. Lawyers have also raised concerns about how the changes would apply to cases already waiting to be heard.
The policy has also created political pressure for the government. Some Labour backbenchers have voiced concern about curbing jury trial, while Conservative critics have described the plans as the “beginning of the end of jury trials”. Victims’ groups were among those joining Tuesday’s protest, highlighting the breadth of concern over the reforms.
The Courts and Tribunals Bill was introduced on 25 February and is expected to face close scrutiny as it moves through Parliament. With the Crown Court backlog still rising and opposition hardening among lawyers and campaigners, the proposals are set to become one of the most contentious parts of the government’s justice agenda.